“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,
for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
We are so thankful for a brand new year, because with that comes new Hope and new Promises. We have come through 2020 and overcome challenges with limited services, physical distancing, and live-stream only services. Our hearts have been heavy, having some church family members pass on to glory, and not being able to celebrate their life as we’d normally like. But we have also gained new family, and new connections during this time. Even without regular Sundays and church events - which is new territory for us all - we are still a church family!
That calls for some creativity at times. Sending weekly emails, sharing Facebook posts, packaging fun seasonal activity and snack bags for kids, having a birdhouse building project, and ice cream drive-thru events, and creating some specially-made live-stream events are some of the ways we've kept reaching out.
Celebrate Recovery was adapted to online only earlier in the year, but thankfully that’s not been the case for the past months. We are currently so very thankful to have our groups meeting in-person again so they can continue to support each other.
Thank you for your faithfulness in giving and supporting this church. We even needed a new boiler and roof repair through all of this, but God provided. We continue to support our missionaries, and are excited that so many have been creatively connecting and working together online to share the Gospel and touch lives. Never forget that God is still on the move!
Our Hope in Jesus is so very crucial. Part of that is reminding ourselves not to be dragged down by negativity, the media, or the fear it can often focus on and generate. Many times they fail to showcase the positive things that are happening in our world, so let us continue to dig for the goodness all around us, because it is there!
We continue to trust in Him to lead us through all things - through everything. We look forward to the new and wonderful things He has in store for 2021. Our God is so faithful, and is worthy to be trusted - especially during this time. Stay close to Him and stay strong in the faith: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love.” (1 Corinthians 16:13,14)
We love you all and pray many blessings on your 2021!
Sincerely,
Pastor Carey de Jong
Lead Pastor, Kamloops Full Gospel